California passes 70,000 COVID-19 deaths – KIRO 7 News Seattle

SACRAMENTO, California – The coronavirus death toll in California has hit another once unfathomable milestone – 70,000 people – despite the recent rise in infections showing the state with the lowest rate of new infections of any state.

Last year at this time, cases started ticking across the state and by January California was in the midst of the worst spike in the pandemic. The daily deaths approached 700.

The most recent surge began in the summer and was driven by the Delta variant, which was primarily aimed at the unvaccinated. Worst of all during this spike, the average daily death toll in California was in the lower range of hundreds.

Data collected by Johns Hopkins University showed the state had 70,132 deaths as of Monday noon. It is the highest in the country, surpassing Texas by about 3,000 and Florida by 13,000, although California’s per capita death rate of 177 per 100,000 is in the bottom third of the US

“There is very little, if anything, that compares,” said Dr. California Minister of Health, Mark Ghaly, on the death toll.

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MORE ABOUT PANDEMIC:

– Moderna has no plans to share its COVID-19 vaccine recipe

– Merck asks FDA to approve promising COVID-19 pill

– Russia’s new COVID-19 cases, deaths near all-time high

– New Zealand’s doctors and teachers need to be vaccinated soon

– Sydney opens for vaccination after over 100 days of lockdown

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Check out all of AP’s pandemic coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic

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WHAT ELSE HAPPENS:

GENEVA – A group of experts advising the World Health Organization on vaccines has recommended that the elderly and those with compromised immune systems receive an extra dose of the COVID-19 vaccine as part of their regular schedule, in line with what many rich countries like the UK do and France and the US have already recommended for their population.

At a press conference on Monday, WHO vaccine director Dr. Kate O’Brien, the group advised people with weaker immune systems to receive “an extra dose” of any WHO-approved vaccine over and above those normally recommended to create an immune response to protect them from serious illness, hospitalization and death protection.

O’Brien said that this third dose should be given to people sometime between one and three months after the second dose and was not considered a booster.

She stressed that this recommendation does not apply to healthy, younger adults who have a normal immune response to the vaccination and who have no underlying medical conditions. The WHO expert group recommended that they get the same vaccine that they received for their original vaccination, if possible.

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SIOUX FALLS, SD – A tiger in a Sioux Falls zoo has contracted COVID-19.

KELO-TV reported that Great Plains Zoo officials say Keesa tested positive for the virus. The staff noticed that Keesa was coughing and acting lethargic during the first week of October. The source of Keesa’s infection is unknown.

Other big cats at the facility, including two tigers and a pair of snow leopards, have also shown symptoms of COVID-19. All animals are tested and taken out of the exhibition for care and observation. The zoo’s vet Louden Wright said most cats recover.

Other zoos across the country have reported COVID-19 infections in big cats. The U.S. Department of Agriculture approved a vaccine for susceptible animals. Officials at the Great Plan Zoo say their animals will be vaccinated when they receive the vaccine.

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BRATTLEBORO, Vt. – The state of Vermont hopes to use $ 5 million in COVID-19 aid to help purchase and move RVs in flood-prone areas.

The plan builds on experience gained during the 2011 Tropical Storm Irene floods and aims to help RV residents find new shelter if they accept the takeover, said Stephanie Smith, Vermont Emergency Management Hazard Mitigation Officer.

Vermont Public Radio said a recent statewide report listed flood risk as a top concern for RV parks across the state. The report ranked parks in Starksboro, Braintree and Bennington as the greatest risk of damage.

Vermont has a great deal of discretion over how it spends the more than $ 2.7 billion in American Rescue Plan Act funds it is expected to receive.

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COUNTING

On Monday, the Vermont Department of Health reported 222 new cases of the virus that causes COVID-19, bringing the nationwide total since the pandemic started to just under 35,900.

41 people have been hospitalized with COVID-19, 12 of them in intensive care.

The state reports a total of 335 fatalities.

The seven-day moving average of daily new cases in Vermont has increased for the past two weeks from 199.57 new cases per day on September 25th to 207.29 new cases per day on October 9th.

The seven-day moving average of daily deaths in Vermont has increased for the past two weeks from 1.71 deaths per day on September 25 to 2.00 deaths per day on October 9.

The Associated Press uses data collected by the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering to measure outbreak case numbers and deaths in the United States.

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SEATTLE – Most of Washington’s health care workers were fully vaccinated against the coronavirus, a week before the state’s vaccination deadline.

By Monday morning, 88% of health care workers had submitted proof of vaccination, reported the Washington State Hospital Association. The results include data from 94% of state hospitals collected after October 4th.

The Seattle Times reports that the remaining 12% of workers are partially vaccinated, have an approved exemption and accommodation, have applied for or are about to apply for an exception that has not been reviewed, have not yet provided proof of vaccination, or are choosing not to be vaccinated .

The hospital association said it believed 2% to 5% of hospital staff could leave the workforce because of the mandate.

All healthcare workers must be fully vaccinated by October 18 or expect a “non-disciplinary discharge” if they fail to meet job requirements, Governor Jay Inslee announced in August. The hospital association announced that the final vaccination numbers will not be available until the beginning of November.

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WAUKESHA, Wisconsin – A parent sued a school district in southeastern Wisconsin after their son contracted COVID-19 from a classmate.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that Shannon Jensen filed the lawsuit in federal court against the Waukesha School District and School Board on October 5th.

According to the lawsuit, in May the board lifted student masks and other measures to contain COVID-19. A classmate of Jensen’s son came to school in September with symptoms and was not wearing a mask. Jensen’s son sat next to the sick schoolgirl and wore a mask, but got infected anyway. Jensen’s other two sons later tested positive as well.

School council president Joseph Como declined to comment on the lawsuit.

Minocqua Brewing Company Super PAC is funding the lawsuit. The brewery is owned by Kirk Bangstad, who has expressed frustration at the way former President Donald Trump’s administration has responded to the pandemic. He ran unsuccessfully against incumbent Republican state representative Rob Swearingen last year.

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WEST HAVEN, Connecticut – A Connecticut mayor requested a forensic investigation into the city’s spending on federal pandemic aid funds after encountering issues she believed suggested fraud.

West Haven Mayor Nancy Rossi, who is also a certified public accountant, said in a video posted on the city’s YouTube page that she had come across several large issues that could be fraudulent. An FBI spokesman said agents visited town hall on Friday but did not want to confirm whether an investigation was ongoing.

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COLOMBO, Sri Lanka – The Sri Lankan authorities have decided to vaccinate school children against COVID-19 starting next week.

According to the Ministry of Health, vaccinations are due to begin on October 21 and the vaccine will initially be given to schoolchildren between the ages of 18 and 19. You will only get the Pfizer vaccine.

The ministry says everyone over 20 was given a first dose, while 82% received both doses.

Sri Lanka lifted a six-week lockdown on October 1 after COVID-19 cases and deaths saw a rapid decline. The government continues to maintain strict restrictions. Public gatherings are banned and trains are stopped.

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